Bart Macdonald is CEO and Co-Founder of Sapling, the onboarding and HRIS solution for high-growth, global teams.

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Today’s human resources leader arguably has more to juggle than ever before. Recent record-high job openings and a significant skills shortage give the most in-demand talent many job choices. As a result, I’ve watched firsthand as the previously administrative HR function transitions to become more strategic and forward-thinking.

Modern HR leaders have much to consider if they want to attract and retain top talent for their organization. As the CEO and co-founder of an onboarding and HRIS platform, I've developed four questions that are important for every HR leader to answer in any organization:

1. What percentage of our employees are engaged?

Gallup reported in 2018 that only 34% of employees are engaged, meaning they’re “involved in, enthusiastic about and committed to their work and workplace." Furthermore, Gallup reported in 2017 that business units with high engagement have clear advantages, including:

• 41% lower absenteeism.

• 24–59% lower turnover.

• 17% higher productivity.

• 21% higher profitability.

HR leaders should track and analyze employee engagement rates over time to identify and respond to engagement issues in a timely manner.

Regular employee engagement surveys can be instrumental in collecting high-level engagement data, and more frequent pulse surveys identify areas for improvement. For example, an engagement survey might find that disengaged employees tend to be dissatisfied with their opportunities for professional development. Pulse surveys can ask more specific questions to learn whether employees need better career pathing, more mentoring or something entirely different.

2. How much turnover can we expect in the next quarter and in the next year?

In my experience in the HR space, an average annual turnover rate around 10% is usually considered healthy, though this number can vary widely by industry or role.

HR leaders should track their organization’s historical turnover rates so they’re prepared to backfill positions and identify trends in the wrong direction. It can be useful to slice the data by:

• Voluntary and involuntary turnover to understand what percentage of employees are quitting and what percentage are being let go.

• 90-day turnover and first-year turnover to ascertain whether employees are leaving before reaching full productivity.

• Manager or department to determine whether specific managers or departments have a higher turnover rate than others.

Armed with this information, HR leaders can plan for turnover so it doesn’t catch them off guard.

3. Do we have internal candidates to fill in when key roles are vacated?

Given the average turnover rate of 10%, key roles — such as leadership or highly specialized functions — are bound to be vacated.

Forward-looking HR leaders understand the importance of succession planning in order to fill many of these roles. When high-potential employees are identified, it’s crucial to discuss career paths and development plans to help them grow into the roles you need them to eventually fill.

This, of course, comes with the added bonus of having an engaged, high-quality workforce that stays at your organization because they know they have a future there.

4. What is our compensation strategy?

If you don’t have a compensation strategy, it’s time to develop one. Compensation is often listed as a top reason for employee turnover (registration required). Furthermore, I've observed fair compensation practices have been a key focus area for many organizations as gender and racial pay gaps persist.

HR leaders should be able to communicate how their compensation strategy holds up against the market and how it ensures pay equity across the organization. Payscale reported that most organizations complete a full market study annually, develop pay ranges for each position and offer more competitive compensation for the most in-demand roles. Still, most organizations do not plan to perform a pay equity analysis.

It’s important to determine how employees will move within their pay ranges, what you will do when an employee reaches the upper limits and how you will reward performance and loyalty. Setting this out in your compensation strategy can ensure more equitable pay distribution that will help you retain talent.

Final Thoughts

Today’s HR leaders are taking a more strategic view of their organizations in order to address modern workforce challenges. As we continue to see record-high job openings, it’s important to keep a pulse on employee engagement, retention, mobility and compensation. Doing so will ensure your workforce can meet the needs of your organization now and in the future.